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Don Barshay: Confidence in moving forward with municipal energy

Posted:
07/26/2013 01:00:00 AM MDT

As a senior and a potential Boulder municipal electric customer, I was greatly relieved to hear the confirmation last night from the third-party independent evaluator: Boulder's muni can have rates and reliability comparable to Xcel's, a solid financial footing with more than adequate funds to pay off its bonds, and a power supply that is focused on renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

I felt confident in the conclusions of the evaluator because their team has worked with over 300 utilities -- from the very largest in the nation to municipal utilities even smaller than Boulder's -- and has had extensive experience both with renewable energy and acquisitions of utilities.

I was excited to learn that Boulder's analysis was so robust and conservative that the potential for rate savings and better reliability and more renewables could be even better than anticipated. This is the kind of legacy I would like to leave for the next generation.

What I learned convinced me that the so-called citizen "debt limit" ballot initiative is just a last-ditch Astroturf attempt by a corporate monopoly to keep Boulder as its cash cow.

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